This invention relates to a traveler, which is a device generally known in the art as comprising a track mounted on a support and a car slideably mounted on the track.
Travelers are employed on sailing vessels at various locations to assist in the adjustment of sails. Typical locations include mainsheet systems, adjustable genoa lead systems, adjustable spinnaker poles, and mainsail systems using full length battens. These systems are shown and described in current catalogs available from Harken, Inc., Pewaukee, Wis., and on its corresponding website.
In general, a traveler comprises an elongate track and a car slideably mounted for movement along the length of the track. The car is restrained for movement away from the track, usually by overlapping portions in the case of a simple slider or by bearings which engage corresponding grooves in each side of the track. The top of the car usually carries a fitting, such as a strap, to enable attachment of the car to another object, such as a block.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,144,830 discloses a traveler with recirculating ball bearings carried by the car. The ball bearings are installed in an oval cylindrical passage on each side of the car, with the passage being inwardly open to expose a line of balls. The track has V shaped grooves on both sides of the track, and the balls of the car ride along the surfaces of the grooves and prevent upward or downward disengagement of the car from the track.
While the use of recirculating ball bearings provides low friction performance over a variety of conditions, there are several drawbacks in using systems of this nature. Since the exposed line of ball bearings is retained only by virtue of contact with walls of the groove in the track, the car cannot be removed from the track without the bearings falling out and scattering. Installation of a car onto a track presents related problems, with the bearings required to be individually and carefully installed. Presently, the only solution to these problems is to provide a short length of metal or plastic track which is brought into abutting relation with the main track. The car may only be installed and removed from the main track grooves with the aid of this track segment in a tedious procedure that often goes awry, resulting in a loss of bearings.
The problem is additionally compounded when a traveler system is used in connection with a full batten mainsail. In such application, a track is mounted along the length of the back of the mast. The sail has full length battens which extend generally horizontally on the sail. The forward end of each batten carries a fitting which is attached to a car mounted on the track. These systems provide support for the sail and facilitate raising and lowering of the sail.
A difficulty arises if there is a need to remove the sail from the mast. The cars cannot be slid off the bottom end of the track because the bearings will fall out. Therefore, it is necessary to use the special tool described above, or it becomes necessary to disengage each of the cars at their linkage to the battens, either of which is a time consuming and tedious process, particularly on a boat that may be rocking or otherwise unsteady.
Furthermore, in all cases where recirculating ball bearings are employed, it is necessary to secure caps at each end of the track to prevent the car from accidentally sliding off. If the end caps should break or become disengaged, especially while sailing, serious problems can occur.
In view of the above, there is a longfelt and unresolved need in the art to provide a traveler car having a conventional recirculating ball bearing system together with a feature to enable the bearings to be self-contained in the car while still providing full bearing contact with the groove in the track. Such a feature would enable installation and removal of the car on the track without resort to special tools or without concern about loss of the bearings.